Indian Cattle Research Articles

Genome based phylogeny and virulence factor analysis of mastitis causing Escherichia coli isolated from Indian cattle

Mastitis is a highly infectious disease prevalent in dairy cattle and it is majorly caused by Escherichia coli (E. coli). The objective of present study is to investigate the occurrence of virulence genes, antimicrobial susceptibility and comparative analysis of E. coli (IVRI KOL CP4 and CM IVRI KOL-1) isolates from mastitis infected animal. Whole-genome sequencing (WGS) was performed using a PacBio RS II system and de novo assembled using Hierarchical Genome Assembly Process (HGAP3). Bacterial Pan Genome Analysis Pipeline (BPGA) was used for pangenome analysis. A set of 50 E. coli isolates were used for comparative analysis (48 collected from the database and 2 reference sequences). Core genes were further concatenated for phylogenetic analyses. In silico analysis was performed for antibiotic resistance and virulence gene identification. Both of the E. coli isolates carried many resistance genes including, b-lactamase, quinolones, rifampicin, macrolide, aminoglycoside and phenicols resistance. We detected 39 virulence genes in IVRI KOL CP4 and 52 in CM IVRI KOL-1 which include toxins, adhesions, invasins, secretion machineries or iron acquisition system. High prevalence of mastitis strains belongs to phylogroups A, although few isolates were also assigned to phylogenetic groups B1 and B2. In conclusion, the present study reported the presence of genes involved in Adherence, Iron acquisition, secretion system and toxins which shown to be crucial in MPEC pathogenicity. This is the first whole genome analysis of MPEC strains to be carried out in Indian isolate to highlights the spread of resistance and virulence genes in food animals.

Estimation of genetic parameters for production and reproductive traits in Indian Karan-Fries cattle using multi-trait Bayesian approach.

Estimates of variance components are needed for implementing genetic selection. This study was conducted to genetic parameters for production and reproductive traits on Indian Karan-Fries cattle using multi-trait repeatability animal model. Data collected from ICAR-National Dairy Research Institute, Karnal, India (from 1988 to 2019) were used. Single-trait and multi-trait repeatability animal models were used for parameter estimation. The posterior mean of Heritability estimates for 305-day milk yield (305-DMY), lactation milk yield (LMY), lactation length (LL) were 0.20 ± 0.03, 0.19 ± 0.03 and 0.06 ± 0.02, respectively. For age at first calving (AFC), calving interval (CI), and days open (DO), the posterior mean of heritability estimates were 0.24 ± 0.08, 0.06 ± 0.01, and 0.07 ± 0.02, respectively. The repeatability estimates for 305-DMY, LMY, LL, CI, and DO were 0.37 ± 0.02, 0.34 ± 0.02, 0.15 ± 0.02, 0.09 ± 0.02, and 0.12 ± 0.02, respectively. Genetic correlation between milk production traits (305-DMY, LMY, and LL) was positive and strong (> 0.80). However, the genetic correlation between milk production trait and AFC ranges from - 0.31 to 0.12. Unfavorable strong genetic correlations were observed between production and reproductive traits (CI and DO) with values ranged from 0.5 to 0.7. Phenotypic correlations among 305-DMY, LMY, and LL were generally positive and high. The moderate heritability estimates and potential genetic variation for 305-DMY, TMY, and AFC suggested that genetic gain can be obtained for these traits through genetic selection. Low heritability estimates found for LL, CI and DO, indicating that the possibility of changing these traits through genetic selection is small. High genetic correlation observed between productive and fertility traits were unfavorable. The existed strong genetic and phenotypic correlation estimates between CI and DO indicates that recording only one of them would be sufficient in the herd. As the multi-trait model showed slight improvements in the h2 as well as r estimates for both productive and reproductive traits over univariate analysis, future selection with a multi-trait animal model applying Bayesian approach would be recommended.

Intrinsic Risk Factors for Bovine Tropical Theileriosis in Indian Cattle: A Meta-Analysis

Intrinsic Risk Factors for Bovine Tropical Theileriosis in Indian Cattle: A Meta-Analysis

Efficiency of imputing missing genotypes by INDUSCHIP v2 in HF Crossbred cattle

INDUSCHIP- an Illumina platform based custom made genotyping chip was designed with 45K polymorphic markers for Indian cattle breeds and 8K base SNPs of Illumina Bovine LD chip to genotype indigenous and crossbred cattle in India. Current study was undertaken to assess the genotype imputation efficiency of INDUSCHIP v2 microarray in HF crossbred cattle and compare its efficiency of imputation with that of GGP-35K microarray. HD genotyping data of total 869 cattle from 14 Indicine breeds, 2 crossbred (HF and Jersey crossbred) and 2 exotic breeds (HF, Jersey) were used for this study. Post quality control, only 846 animals and 449955 SNPs remained for imputation study. Only 23.65% of 35339 SNPs in GGP-35K chip are found to be common with INDUSCHIP v2 SNP panel. Imputation was carried out with the help of Beagle 5.0 software using subset of both INDUSCHIP v2 and GGP-35K SNP panels. The study revealed higher average concordance rate (CR) and squared correlation (DR 2 ) for INDUSCHIP v2 as compared to GGP-35K in crossbred HF population.

Genetic diversity and effective population sizes of thirteen Indian cattle breeds

BackgroundThe genetic structure of a diverse set of 15 Indian indigenous breeds and non-descript indigenous cattle sampled from eight states was examined, based on 777 k single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) genotypes obtained on 699 animals, with sample sizes ranging from 17 to 140 animals per breed. To date, this is the largest and most detailed assessment of the genetic diversity of Indian cattle breeds.ResultsAdmixture analyses revealed that 109 of the indigenous animals analyzed had more than 1% Bos taurus admixture of relatively recent origin. Pure indigenous animals were defined as having more than 99% Bos indicus ancestry. Assessment of the genetic diversity within and between breeds using principal component analyses, F statistics, runs of homozygosity, the genomic relationship matrix, and maximum likelihood clustering based on allele frequencies revealed a low level of genetic diversity among the indigenous breeds compared to that of Bos taurus breeds. Correlations of SNP allele frequencies between breeds indicated that the genetic variation among the Bos indicus breeds was remarkably low. In addition, the variance in allele frequencies represented less than 1.5% between the Indian indigenous breeds compared to about 40% between Bos taurus dairy breeds. Effective population sizes (Ne) increased during a period post-domestication, notably for Ongole cattle, and then declined during the last 100 generations. Although we found that most of the identified runs of homozygosity are short in the Indian indigenous breeds, indicating no recent inbreeding, the high FROH coefficients and low FIS values point towards small population sizes. Nonetheless, the Ne of the Indian indigenous breeds is currently still larger than that of Bos taurus dairy breeds.ConclusionsThe changes in the estimates of effective population size are consistent with domestication from a large native population followed by consolidation into breeds with a more limited population size. The surprisingly low genetic diversity among Indian indigenous cattle breeds might be due to their large Ne since their domestication, which started to decline only 100 generations ago, compared to approximately 250 to 500 generations for Bos taurus dairy cattle.

Institutionalization of veterinary science in colonial India

This brief report examines the origin of the Western veterinary medical science and development of various veterinary medical Institutions in India during the colonial period. The veterinary science has been in existence in India since the ancient period. During the medieval period, the animal husbandry was also paid attention. But, with the expansion of British rule, the whole scenario of animal husbandry practices changed in India. The cattle diseases such as Cattle Plague (Rinderpest), Foot and Mouth Disease, Anthrax, Haemorrhagic Septicaemia, Blackquarter etc. were widespread and these had an adverse effect on the economy and public health in India There were no veterinary schools and colleges to control the animal diseases during the pre and early colonial period. The Indian Cattle Plague Commission (1869) recommended the establishment of veterinary institutions under the colonial management. As a result, Imperial Bacteriological Laboratory was established at Poona (1890); further, shifted to Mukteshwar in 1893 with a branch of Izatnagar (1913). Within a decade of its introduction nearly half a million doses were being administered annually. The introduction of the Western veterinary science was an important landmark in the history of the Indian animal husbandry. The beginning of animal vaccination was an important milestone which ushered in the process of immunization for the animals.

Legacy of draught cattle breeds of South India: Insights into population structure, genetic admixture and maternal origin.

The present study is the first comprehensive report on diversity, population structure, genetic admixture and mitochondrial DNA variation in South Indian draught type zebu cattle. The diversity of South Indian cattle was moderately high. A significantly strong negative correlation coefficient of -0.674 (P<0.05) was observed between the effective population size of different breeds and their estimated FIS. The genetic structure analysis revealed the distinctness of Kangayam, Vechur and Punganur cattle from the rest of the zebu breeds. The results showed the influence of Hallikar breed in the development of most Mysore type cattle breeds of South India with the exception of Kangayam. Bayesian clustering analysis was performed to assess the taurine admixture in South Indian zebu cattle using purebred Jersey and Holstein-Friesian as reference genotypes. Relatively high levels of taurine admixture (>6.25%) was observed in Punganur, Vechur, Umblachery and Pulikulam cattle breeds. Two major maternal haplogroups, I1 and I2, typical of zebu cattle were observed, with the former being predominant than the later. The pairwise differences among the I2 haplotypes of South Indian cattle were relatively higher than West Indian (Indus valley site) zebu cattle. The results indicated the need for additional sampling and comprehensive analysis of mtDNA control region variations to unravel the probable location of origin and domestication of I2 zebu lineage. The present study also revealed major concerns on South Indian zebu cattle (i) risk of endangerment due to small effective population size and high rate of inbreeding (ii) lack of sufficient purebred zebu bulls for breeding and (iii) increasing level of taurine admixture in zebu cattle. Availability of purebred semen for artificial insemination, incorporation of genomic/molecular information to identify purebred animals and increased awareness among farmers will help to maintain breed purity, conserve and improve these important draught cattle germplasms of South India.

A Study on β-Casein Gene Polymorphism in Crossbred Cattle and Murrah / Graded Murrah Buffalo in Tamil Nadu

Background: Majority of the people believed that, only the native breeds have A2 milk than exotic or crossbred animals. There is no enough research on milk protein variants have been carried out in Indian zebu cattle. Present study was conducted to screen more number of crossbred cattles and buffaloes in Tamil Nadu to identify the frequency of A1 and A2 alleles in the population.Methods: The study was conducted on 68 cattle and 172 murrah / graded murrah buffaloes to explore the polymorphic variants of β-casein gene. Genomic DNA was extracted by phenol-chloroform method. Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) was performed with allele specific primers to amplify a 244 bp long fragment of beta-casein gene and visualized in 2% agarose gel electrophoresis. The population genetic indices were calculated based on the formulas.Result: In the present study revealed higher level of A2A2 genotype frequency (1.00) and fixation of A2 allele in kangayam cattle and murrah / graded murrah buffalo. The observed frequency of A1A1, A1A2 and A2A2 genotypes were 0.38,0.62 and 0.00 for jersey crossbred and 0.29, 0.71 and 0.00 for HF crossbred cattle. The range of Expected homozygosity (0.50 to 1.00), polymorphism information content (0.30 to 0.38), effective number of alleles (1.00 to 2.00) and level of possible variability realization value (44.54% to 100%) reflected existence of medium genetic variability in studied population.

Analysis of allelic pattern across milk trait genes in native cattle adapted to high altitude region of Leh-Ladakh

Ladakhi, the native cattle from Ladakh region of India have developed over the years under natural selection and can survive well at extreme climatic conditions, viz. high altitude, huge barren lands, low temperature (≤–20°C) and hypoxic conditions. Even at extreme survival conditions, this cattle provides around 2–5 kg of milk. This highly evolved germplasm might possess unique alleles or combinations of alleles, hence attempt was made to study the frequency of allelic variants at important candidate gene loci affecting dairy traits. The observed distribution pattern of allele frequencies were different from taurine but in accordance with other Indian native cattle breeds indicating maintenance of indicine characteristics and near absence of taurine influence/introgression effect on this naturally evolved germplasm. Further, variant E at κ-CN locus and two novel variants at BTN-3 loci were also observed. The present findings helped to understand the unique Ladakhi cattle population with respect to polymorphism and distribution of various alleles in candidate genes related to milk traits.

Detection of A1 and A2 Alleles at Beta-casein Locus in Bargur and Umblachery (Indian Zebu) Cattle Breeds by Allele-specific PCR

Background: Many genetic variants of beta-casein in different breeds of cattle have been reported. The A1 and A2 are the most common variants. The breeds of Zebu cattle have high frequency of A2 allele or monomorphic for A2 allele. The current study aimed to screen Indian Zebu cattle breeds, Bargur and Umblachery, for A1 and A2 alleles at beta-casein locus.Methods: A total of 48 Bargur and 42 Umblachery cattle were genotyped for β-casein (CSN2) gene using allele-specific PCR. The gene and genotype frequencies were estimated. The theoretical heterozygosity (Heexp), experimental heterozygosity (Heobs), polymorphism information content (PIC), expected homozygosity (E), effective number of alleles (ENA) and level of possible variability realization (V%) were calculated.Result: The investigation revealed the presence of both A1 and A2 alleles at beta-casein locus in both Bargur and Umblachery cattle breeds. The A1A1 genotype was not observed in both the breeds. The frequencies of A1A2 and A2A2 genotypes were 0.125 and 0.875 respectively in Bargur and 0.050 and 0.950 respectively in Umblachery breed. The study indicated the predominance of A2 variant in both the breeds. The frequencies of A1 and A2 alleles were 0.063 and 0.937 respectively in Bargur and 0.02 and 0.98 respectively in Umblachery breed. The values of experimental heterozygosity (Heobs), theoretical heterozygosity (Heexp), polymorphism information content (PIC), expected homozygosity (E), effective number of alleles (ENA), level of possible variability realization (V%) were 0.125, 0.1163, 0.1095,0.8837, 1.131 and 11.88 respectively in Bargur breed. These values were 0.048, 0.0468, 0.0458, 0.9532, 1.049 and 4.79 respectively in Umblachery population. The observed heterozygosity and PIC values revealed the existence of very low genetic variability in the tested populations. The present work will be a contribution to the study on beta-casein locus in Indian zebu cattle.

Differences in milk metabolites in Malnad Gidda (Bos indicus) cows reared under pasture-based feeding system

The milk and milk products from cows reared under grazing system are believed to be healthier and hence have high demand compared to milk from cows reared in the non-grazing system. However, the effect of grazing on milk metabolites, specifically lipids has not been fully understood. In this study, we used acetonitrile precipitation and methanol:chloroform methods for extracting the milk metabolites followed by liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (LC–MS/MS) run to identify the different metabolites between the milk of grazing and non-grazing early lactating Malnad Gidda cows. Various carbohydrates, amino acids, nucleosides and vitamin derivatives were found to be differentially abundant in grazing cows. A total of 35 metabolites were differentially regulated (fold change above 1.5) between the two groups. Tyrosyl-threonine, histidinyl-cysteine, 1-methyladenine, l-cysteine and selenocysteine showed fold change above 3 in grazing cows. The lipid profile of milk showed a lesser difference between grazing and non-grazing cows as compared to polar metabolites. To the best of our knowledge, this is the largest inventory of milk metabolomics data of an Indian cattle (Bos indicus) breed. We believe that our study would help to emerge a field of Nutri-metabolomics and veterinary omics research.

Effect of environmental and physiological variables on saliva production in Hirudinaria granulosa (Indian cattle leech)

Rhythmicity in the saliva production of leech Hirudinaria granulosa has not been evaluated. This is, possibly, the first effort to evaluate the amount of saliva production under different environmental and physiological variables. A total of 90 leeches were divided into six groups (n=15) to elucidate the variation in saliva production based on temperature, body weight, and time period. Significantly (P≤0.01) higher volume of saliva was produced (2.23±0.10) at a temperature of 37 oC compared to that at 25 oC (1.53±0.11). Based on body weight, a significantly (P≤0.01) higher amount of saliva (2.52±0.05) was produced by the leeches of the large group (≥0.4g weight) as compared to the smaller group (1.66±0.08) with a bodyweight of (≤0.3g weight). In addition, the Pre-feeding and post feeding body weight of leeches (n=30) with saliva production revealed significantly high correlation of 0.962 and 0.870. Evaluation based on periodicity revealed a significantly higher amount of saliva production in the morning hours (2.32 ±0.09) compared to evening hours (2.01±0.10). Thus, our study concluded a relatively more elevated amount of saliva production in the morning hours at a temperature of 37 oC with higher body weight. Therefore, our study infers biological rhythms in the leech Hirudinaria granulosa.

Molecular characterization of coat color gene in Sahiwal versus Karan Fries bovine

BackgroundMelanocortin-1-receptor gene (MC1R) plays a significant role in signaling cascade of melanin production. In cattle, the coat colors, such as red and black, are an outcome of eumelanin and pheomelanin pigments, respectively. The coat colors have become critical factors in the animal selection process. This study is therefore aimed at the molecular characterization of reddish-brown coat-colored Sahiwal cattle in comparison to the black and white-colored Karan Fries. ResultsThe Sequence length of the MC1R gene was 954 base pairs in Sahiwal cattle. The sequences were examined and submitted to GenBank Acc.No. MG373575 to MG373605. Alignment of both (Sahiwal and Karan Fries) protein sequences by applying ClustalO multiple sequence alignment programs revealed 99.8–96.8% sequence similarity within the bovine. MC1R gene phylogenetic studies were analyzed by MEGA X. The gene MC1R tree, protein confines, and hereditary difference of cattle were derived from Ensemble Asia Cow Genome Browser 97. One unique single-nucleotide polymorphism (c.844C>A) (SNP) was distinguished. Single amino acid changes were detected in the seventh transmembrane structural helix region, with SNP at p.281 T>N of MC1R gene in Karan Fries cattle. ConclusionsIn this current research, we first distinguished the genomic sequence of the MC1R gene regions that showed evidence of coat variation between Indian indigenous Sahiwal cattle breed correlated with crossbreed Karan Fries. These variations were found in the Melanocortin 1 receptor coding regions of the diverse SNPs. The conclusions of this research provide new insights into understanding the coat color variation in crossbreed compared to the Indian Sahiwal cattle. Graphical abstract▪

Comparitive Genome Sequence Analysis of Bovine Lymphocyte Antigen BoLA DRB3.2 Alleles in Deoni and Ongole (Bos indicus) Cattle Breeds of India

Background: India, a major livestock region of the Asian countries is rich in animal genetic resources having special qualities of hardy nature, resistance to many diseases and adopted to adverse climatic conditions. The cattle MHC, Bovine Lymphocyte Antigen DRB3 (BoLA-DRB3) is considered to be a major gene linked with disease resistance traits of Indian cattle. Methods: The present study was carried out to sequence the BoLA-DRB3.2 alleles in Deoni and Ongole breeds of Indian cattle. PCR RFLP analysis of the BoLA-DRB3.2 alleles in Deoni (n=51) and Ongole (n=60) cattle using three different restriction enzymes RsaI, BstYI and HaeIII to find out the possible restriction pattern. Based on the combined allelic patterns, each sample was further analyzed by PCR- SBT technique to detect the SNP variations present in BoLA-DRB3.2 alleles.Result: The PCR RFLP analysis revealed that the highest frequent alleles are *6 (0.216) and *15 (0.225) in Deoni and Ongole breeds of cattle, respectively. The second-highest frequency was observed for BoLA alleles *11 and *6 which were present at a frequency of 0.167 and 0.200 in Deoni and Ongole breeds of cattle, respectively. To get the complete picture of polymorphic pattern of BoLA-DRB3.2 allele direct sequencing was carried out for each plymorphic pattern. The interesting feature noticed in the Ongole breed was that at position 91 and 133 of the sequence, it had both A and G nucleotides in contrast to Bos taurus breed, which had only TT nucleotides. The sequence analysis of BoLA-DRB3 exon 2 between two breeds revealed that there are numerous variations in exon 2, whatever variation, that lead to different mobility shift and band pattern in gels. Deoni and Ongole breeds of cattle had similar variations at positions 94, 134, 211, 235 and 258noticed due to the unique nature of native breeds.

Associative genetic diversity among Sarcocystis cruzi isolates from Northern India based on 18S ribosomal gene.

Sarcocystis cruzi is perhaps the most common Sarcocystis spp. affecting cattle throughout the world. Despite its wide presence across Indian subcontinent, very limited studies are reported from India describing the phylogenetics of the parasite. The present communication describes the phylogenetic characterization of various isolates of S. cruzi. The isolates were characterized at 18S gene locus. An appreciable among of genetic variability was noticed between various S. cruzi isolates. Sequences generated from the present study (MN121572-MN121576) represented two haplotypes with 99.0-100.0% nucleotide homology within themselves. Alongside, nucleotide homology of 98.36-100.0% was observed between Indian isolates and isolates across the globe. The two haplotypes were markedly distinct from each other with 10 nucleotide substitutions within themselves. Moreover, there was a deletion of G nucleotide at position 545 in one of the sequences (MN121575). In general, the Indian isolates were seen closer to isolates from China than to the isolates from Iran, Argentina, Japan, Australia and Netherlands. Results clearly depicted the presence of multiple lineages of S. cruzi in Indian cattle. The findings are very much important in delineating the evolutionary phylogenetics of S. cruzi from India and abroad.

Human Health and Milk Proteins: The A1/A2 Milk Hypothesis

Indigenous breeds of cows and buffaloes are of A2 milk type and hence are a source for safe milk. The A1/A2 status of cattle is determined by the two alleles for beta-casein gene i.e. A1 and A2 cattle may be homozygous for one type of protein (A1A1 or A2A2), or heterozygous (A1A2). A1A1 cattle would produce only A1 milk, A2A2 would produce only A2 milk and A1A2 cattle would produce milk with both A1 and A2 beta - caseins. NBAGR also reported moderate to high frequency of A2 allele among the breeding bulls, further supporting the belief that milk being sold in India is safe for human consumption. Considering the lack of concrete scientific evidence for A1/BCM-7 ill-effects on human health, and predominance of A2 milk in Indian cattle there is no need to move to A2 only.

Mitochondrial DNA polymorphisms in Nepalese Achhami cattle

Achhami cattle is claimed to be the world's smallest cattle which is found in Achham district of Sudur Paschim Province of Nepal. A study was carried out to investigate the polymorphism in the control region of the mitochondrial DNA polymorphism in these Achhami cattle. Thirty-seven blood samples were collected from different pocket areas of in Achham district. Our study revealed that Achhami cattle lie significantly within the indicine haplogroups rather than taurine (34 out of 37 samples) manifesting the later introgression by taurine cattle population. The taurine haplogroup, found within Achhami was different than Lulu cattle, which might be from the independent domestication event. Within indicine haplogroup, I1 type haplogroup (64.7%) was found dominant over I2 type haplogroup (35.3%). Achhami cattle revealed its uniqueness as it segregates from Indian cattle for indicine type as well as Chinese cattle for taurine type. In order to understand its ancestry, the whole genome should be studied together with the consideration of more population of cattle from the Asian region.&#x0D; Bang. J. Anim. Sci. 2020. 49 (1): 22-28

Association of genetic variability in CD209 gene with bovine paratuberculosis disease: a case–control study in the Indian cattle population

This study aimed to explore the association of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in CD209 gene with the occurrence of bovine paratuberculosis (PTB) disease caused by Mycobacterium avium subspecies paratuberculosis (MAP) in Indian cattle. A total of 213 animals were preliminarily selected on the basis of physical body condition score, which was then screened by a panel of diagnostic tests viz. Johnin, ELISA, fecal microscopy, and fecal culture, for the establishment of a case–control resource population. A total of four SNPs viz. rs208222804, rs211654540, rs208814257, and rs210748127 in CD209 gene were genotyped by PCR-RFLP. All SNPs, except rs210748127, were polymorphic in our population. Genotypic–phenotypic associations were assessed by the PROCLOGISTIC procedure of SAS 9.3. The SNP rs208814257 yielded three genotypes viz. CC, CG, and GG, which were significantly (p < 0.05) different in case as compared to the control population. The odds of CC and CG in comparison to GG genotype were 1.21 and 0.40, respectively. The CG genotype was significantly higher in control population, indicating that this genotype may provide resistance against PTB in our resource population. Upon validation in an independent, larger test population and following biological characterization, SNP rs208814257 can be incorporated in marker panel for selection of animals with greater resistance to MAP infection.

Identification of a new potential native Indian cattle breed by population differentiation based on microsatellite markers.

India has a rich heritage of rearing cattle where farmers selected native cattle suitable to their local agro-ecological conditions for centuries. It is reflected in 50 indigenous breeds of cattle, besides many lesser known populations not explored so far. It is the need of the hour to characterize such populations to have prudent improvement and conservation options. Thus, present study was carried out to assess the genetic diversity and relationship between an unexplored local cattle population (Kathani) and four established cattle breeds of adjoining area (Gaolao, Kosali, Ongole and Motu) by using 20 FAO recommended microsatellite markers. High variability was recorded in the Kathani population with a total of 198 alleles that varied between 5 (ILSTS11, TGLA22, INRA05) and 17 (ILSTS34) with a mean of 9.9 ± 0.73. The average observed heterozygosity (Ho) was 0.658 ± 0.054. Heterozygote deficiency was not significant (FIS = 0.029 ± 0.063) indicating random mating prevalent across this population. Mean estimates of observed number of alleles and heterozygosity over all the loci and five populations were 9.73 ± 0.421 and 0.617 ± 0.022, respectively. In the overall populations, the homozygote excess (FIT) of 0.293 ± 0.032, was partly due to the homozygote excess within breeds (FIS = 0.121 ± 0.025) and to a larger extent due to high (0.05 < FST < 0.15) genetic differentiation among them (FST = 0.195 ± 0.029). Substantial pairwise Nei's genetic distance and high population differentiation indicated towards separate genetic identity of Kathani cattle. The analysis of genetic structure based on Bayesian approach indicated that the most probable number of clusters is five confirming definitive genetic differentiation among all the popultions. Entire analysis showed that a significant amount of genetic variation is maintained in Kathani, a lesser known cattle population that is distinct from the recognized breeds in the proximity. As this autochthonous cattle plays role in the economic sustainability of a marginal and disadvantaged area, it is important to preserve and develop its breeding.

Association of bovine KISS1 single nucleotide polymorphisms with reproductive traits in Indian Cattle.

Kisspeptins, a family of neuropeptide encoded by the Kiss1 gene, have emerged as crucial regulator of fertility and reproduction by regulating the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis. The present study was aimed to identify and associate SNPs in the KISS1 gene with reproductive traits in cattle of Indian origin. DNA samples collected from 300 individual cows of three Indian dairy breeds (Gir, Kankrej and Frieswal) of cattle were used in the study. The SNPs of KISS1 gene were identified with PCR-RFLP and sequence analysis using two sets of primer pairs. A total of 5 SNPs were identified in the targeted region of which, two were selected for screening the population and association studies. The analysis revealed that genotypes of rs442633552G>A and rs42022871C>T had a significant association with dry period. The SNP rs42022871C>T also established significant role in milk production traits, and selection of TT-genotyped animals will improve the reproduction and production potential of the animals.